1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a sports training system and, more particularly, to a practice target system and method for developing accurate throwing abilities for example, of a baseball by a baseball pitcher or football by a quarterback.
2. Description of the Related Art
In order to succeed in sports such as baseball and softball, a person typically must possess the ability to accurately throw a ball. Such an ability is particularly necessary for a pitcher in either of these sports. A pitcher must practice for many hours to develop and maintain accurate throwing abilities.
The traditional method of practicing pitching techniques requires both a pitcher and a catcher. The pitcher throws the ball to the catcher who provides a target with his mitt. This method of training can be successful, but it may be difficult for a pitcher to find second player with adequate skills to assist with the training. This severely limits when the pitcher can practice and for how much time he can practice. In addition, this method of practicing pitching lacks accuracy since it requires the catcher to make a subjective determination about whether or not the ball passed within the strike zone while at the same time attempting to catch a ball traveling at a high velocity. Accordingly, there is a need for a device which can allow a pitcher to practice pitching techniques without the aid of another player that can give the pitcher accurate feedback as to his proficiency level.
Once the pitcher's skills becomes more adept, the pitcher must practice not only pitching the ball within the strike zone, but also pitching the ball within a specific section of the strike zone. For example, the pitcher may want to fine tune his or her skills by practicing throwing pitches that are low and inside. Consequently, there is a need for a device which will allow a pitcher to target points within the strike zone so that he can fine tune his pitching skills.
In order to become a proficient pitcher, a player must also practice for many hours. The tedium of repetitive throwing can be particularly difficult to younger players who are just beginning to learn to pitch. It would be desirable to have an apparatus that can keep a player's interest focused on pitching at the target.
Pitchers can be trained wherever there is adequate open space to throw the ball. Training can occur at a baseball field, an empty lot, or even in a backyard. Ideally, a system for training pitchers should be lightweight, yet sturdy, and collapsible for easy transportation and storage.
Many practice targets are limited to a single sport. As a result, the targets can go unused for much of the year. It would be an advantage if a training target system could be used for a variety of sports. For example, similar type of repetitive training and accuracy requirements exist for football quarterbacks as for baseball pitchers. Additionally, target practice for shooting fire arms requires aiming practice to improve firing accuracy. It would be preferable if a sports training target system could be adapted to multiple sports.
For the above reasons, targets which allow a pitcher to practice throwing a ball have been proposed in the related art. Typical examples of training systems of the prior art can be found in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,803,841 and 5,803,842. However, none of these prior art pitching targets achieve the advantages of the present invention.